Finn
, a longtime county resident who died in 2010, was awarded a Medal of Honor for bravery during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.

Johnson
was a Camp Pendleton Marine posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism during the Vietnam War in 1968.

Mabus said that although the actions of each occurred during different conflicts, they "were united in their uncommon valor."

Peralta was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross after he used his body to shield fellow Marines from an insurgent grenade during house-to-house fighting in Fallujah on Nov. 15, 2004.

Supporters argued that his actions warranted the Medal of Honor and continue to press the Pentagon for the upgrade.

Finn was at Naval Air Station Kaneohe Bay when he manned a machine gun during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, despite having been wounded multiple times.

When he died in 2010 in San Diego, Finn was the oldest living Medal of Honor recipient and the last living recipient from the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Johnson was with a Camp Pendleton unit in Vietnam in March 1968 when his 15-man reconnaissance patrol was attacked and he used his body to cover an enemy grenade.

Mabus said in an interview that he wanted to ensure that their sacrifice "will be known by today's sailors and Marines and honored for several decades to come by a new generation of Americans and people from around the world who will come in contact with these ships."

He also said that naming the three ships after men with ties to San Diego was a salute to a city that has consistently supported Navy and Marine activities.

Known as
Arleigh Burke class destroyers,
the ships will conduct a variety of operations and are capable of fighting air, surface and subsurface battles. Each ship is expected to be in service beginning in 2016.

The Marine Corps had sought a Medal of Honor for Peralta, but a panel appointed to investigate his death ruled that it could not definitively say his actions in covering the grenade were voluntary.

Peralta had been severely wounded before that act. Despite the panel's conclusion, the Department of the Navy did give him the second-highest award for valor on the battlefield.

Peralta's sister, Icela Donald, said her family was thrilled to learn a ship will be named after him.

"It's just wonderful," she said. "We are overwhelmed and we feel like he (Rafael) is jumping up and down in heaven right now."

The family was taken aback when Mabus telephoned on Monday to inform it of the ship-naming, she said.

The family's first thought was that something had happened to Rafael's brother, Ricardo, 21, who followed his older sibling into the Marine Corps and is on assignment in Afghanistan.

"We're really, really proud," Donald said. "We're happy for my brother, and we're happy for the whole Hispanic community. He was a big man with a tough heart, and with this he will be alive forever."

Mabus said he has been aware of Peralta and his actions since he first took office in 2009 and supported the recommendation that he receive the Medal of Honor.

Rep. Duncan Hunter
, R-El Cajon, has pressed the Pentagon to name a ship after Peralta and to upgrade his award.

The two-term lawmaker also petitioned the Navy to name a ship after Finn.

"For Sergeant Peralta and John Finn, this is recognition that’s well-deserved," Hunter said in a statement issued by his office.

"This is a very special day for Sergeant Peralta’s family, in particular," he added. "They have waited patiently for the Navy and the Department of Defense to recognize the actions of Sergeant Peralta, which are consistent with the Medal of Honor ---- an award he was nominated for but was wrongly denied. This is a fitting tribute to Sergeant Peralta ---- and other Marines of his generation ---- and will carry his legacy around the world."

Hunter had criticized a Navy decision last year to name a ship after the late farmworker and organizer Cesar Chavez.

"It's also good to see the Navy finally returning to a more traditional convention of ship-naming," he said.